Convertible truck body



Jan. 11, 1949. w. w. GENTRY CONVERTIBLE TRUCK BODY Filed Aug. 13, 1947 I r I l INVENTOR 2Q v 6 WillihJrLWGeld'zy.

an I Patented Jan. 11, 1949 UNITED STATES OFFICE f ;2,459,022 j-" f coNvER'r-rBLE TRUCK BODY William o her, carcas es, Okla. ApplicationAngust 13, 1947, Serial No. 758,31;

This invention relates to truck bodies, and more portion of the body for the carrying of livestock,

poultry, or produce which does not require'par ticular preservation from, or in fact should be open to, the atmosphere. 'f

A further objectof the invention is to provide novel means for quickly dividing thecargo space of the truck into one completely closed compartment, or one closed compartment and one ventilated compartment, thus making a singlefb'ody readily availabl for duplex trucking operations. A further object is to provide a novel truck ,body and a system of hinged door leaves which are easy to install and operate. f

With the above and otherobj ects in View, which will more readily appear as the nature of themvention is better understood, the same consists in the novel construction and combination of parts as hereinafter illustrated and claimedp A preferred and practical embodimentof the invention is shown in the accompanying draw-j ings, in which: j Figure 1 is a side elevation of the improved truck body.

' Figure 2 is a horizontal section of the body shown in Figure 1 illustrating the doors or par titions in full lines to divide the cargo space of the body into two compartments; the dotted lines showing the doors in position to make one large compartment. s

Figure 3 is a detail perspective view of the doors made in upper and lower sections.

Similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures-of the drawing. As will be observed from the drawings, the invention includes a truck body designated generally as T, which may be of any desired or approved construction, having the interior thereof divisible when desired into compartment A and A.

The compartment A has side walls I and 2 pro:

l 2 vided-with access doors 3 and 4 and the opposite endwalls 5 and 5a. The end wall 5a may be provided with access doors 5b. The sections la and 2a of the side walls, and the adjacent end wall 5 embracing the compartment A, are provided with openings 6 to render same perforate or foraminous whereby the compartment A may be opened to the atmosphere when desired.

The compartments A and A are formed by a shiftable partition B located at a suitable point transversely of the interior, said partition comprising pairs of folding doors each including the main door leaves 0 and D and the secondary leaves C and D. The main door leaves C and D are hinged to the'interior of the truck body by thehinges 1 and 8.

.The inner edges of the door leaves C--C' and DD' are connected by means of the hinges Band II).

f The door leaves each have a width equal to a radius which is one-half of the floor width of the truck body and also equal to the length of the compartment A. Thus, when the pairs of doors, including the leaves C-C and DD, are arranged transversely of the interior of the body, they divide the cargo space into compartments A and A. Under these circumstances, it will be seen that the compartment A is completely closed, while the compartment A is open to the atmosphere, that is ventilated because of the openings 6.

When both pairs of doors are disposed transversely of the interior of the truck body, the leaves 0 0 and D D' are parallel with each other, and all doors together constitute the partitionB.

When it is desired to convert the entire interior of the truclrbodyinto a closed cargo space, which may be refrigerated if desired, it is only necessary to jmo've the pairs of doors, including leaves-C-C andD -D', toward the end wall 5 of the truck body in such a way that the leaves C and D will be, disposed parallel to the ventilated side wall sections laand 2a of the compartment A, while the leaves 0 and D will flushly cover the inside of the end wall 5 of the truck body to cover the openings '6 provided therein Thus, when the pairs of doors constituting the partition are moved from the full line position in Figure 2 to the dotted line positiomit will be understood that the entire cargospace of the truck body is closed to the atmosphere. On the other hand, when it is desired toship a combination cargo, that is one that must be protected from the atmosphere and one whose contact with the atmosphere is of no consequence orperhapspreierred, it is only necessary to bring the doors back from the dotted line position shown in Figure 2 to that shown in full lines.

Thus, it will be seen that simple manipulation of the doors provides a two-compartment truck body, one of which is closed and adapted for refrigeration, the other of which is open for ventilation, or, if desired, the entire interior may be made into a single closed compartment.

It will,v of ,course, be understood, ithatt-thelside wall portions la and-2a. and the end wall 5 ofzthe compartment A may be made of the slotted type shown, or of any other foraminous formation suitable for the purpose. Also, it is within the scope of the invention to make the end wall i imperthe main leaves C and D to :form the partition when said leaves are projected across thefloor,

edoor leaves hingedly connected to each other at the Junctionef; the imperforate and perforate :sections ofl said; side walls saidapartiticn comprising opposite pairs of main and secondary their inner edges to be disposed in aligned position-to constitute a double walled partition transverselydividing the interior of the truck body into two compartments and hinge means connecting=the-main leaf of each door with the interior; -of,,the truck body at the junction of the or when the said leaves C and D are moved against the inner faces of the perforat side wall portions I and 2a, close said walls-to theoutsideair."- 'In other words, theomission of" the secondarydeaves C and D' and leaving theend-wall 5; solid; would not avoid" the teaching of the present invention. It will be understood that whilethe; improve ments'set forth are described in-"connection-with a truck body, nevertheless, they are equally applicableto a so-called trailerbody; Also; it-makes no: difierence whether the end wall andthe op posite end wall 5a are-front or rear-=wal1skiIn connectionwiththe doors' 5w it will beunderstood that they may be conventional-full length doors or a-convcntional half door-anditail gate combination. "'The doors C-D and C'--D-may be solid, full length doors or each door may consist of'upper and lower sections, as per Figure'3,'str ipp'ed" in conventional fashion to insure air-tightness. Thus, with this arrangement, each pair of doors the sides la and -2w, respectivelyyand only the lower'halt-of each doorC'f-Di movedvparallel tothe inside face of-the end wall 5 leaving the upperhalf in vertical alinement with its related lower half. This would leave theupper half'of the compartment A" open tothe' atmosphere and likewise open thecompartmentA: "This arrangement would leave the entire cargo spac-eopen to the-air and adapt the body tocarrywheat, corn, or the like. This arrangement could of course be used with or without the door and tailgate arrangement-described in connection with wall to. These and other changes maybe resortedmo without departing from the distinctive features set forth herein.

I claim: v

1. A convertible truck body, comprising aofloor, side, top and end walls; saidjfloor, topandpne of the end walls being relatively qimperforate, and said side walls including perforate and im perforate sections, the latter. adjoining ape'rforate end wall, and a partition located at .thejunction of the imperforateandwperforate sections of said side walls, saidpartitioncomprising pairs of hingedly connected door, leaves, one leaf of each pair respectively connected to opposite inner portions of the side walls between said perforate and irnperforate sections, and, movable from a "folded position transversely across the interior of the truck body, which position-fil vides-said body into closed and-ventilatcdzcompartments, to a relatively ;extende'd fDQSii'iiOll whereby the leaves-of each "pair-respectively? lie behind the perforate sections ofgtheisi'demwalls and'the related portions of-the-perforatedend imperforate and perforate sections of said side wall whereby whenthe main leaves are moved to apposition. to'close the inner surface oftthe perforate side .Wallportions, the secondary leaves maybe. moved into position to close theiinsidc face'o'f'the perforate end wall'of the truck body.

BEA. truck body having opposite. end walls which are respectively imperforate and perforate, opposite,, si'de walls .each having corresponding relatively .imperforate and" perforate. sections; foldable, multiplelleaffdoors hingedly connected at.l.-their inner.ends, and one leaf of each unit hinged tothe inner portions. of the side walls at theJUnctiOnfof said-'imperforate and perforate section's thereof, said jdoors being swingable from a.'f.olded,tr ansverseposition vacross the interior of th'e,.bo,dy providing .two cargo compartments to anextended position wherein the leaves hinged to the body are parallel with, the ,perforate sectionspf theside walls, andzthe remaining leaves liebehindthelperforatesend wall thereby to .close all. of...said.perforate portions, to the atmosphere andprovide asingle closed cargo compartment.

.-4...-A. 1 truck body having, oppositemend walls which arerespectively imperf oratej and .perf crate,

-- qll nositemside walls each having. corresponding relatively. imperforate and perforate, sections, and a partition unit locatedsat ,thejunction ,ofuthe imperforate ,and perforate sections of said,-,side walls said .unit including opposite. pairs of, foldable .hing'edly connected vleavesbone leaf ofeach paithineedly. connected .to aside wall at.th.e junction. of thefimperforate and perforate sections and both .pairs of leaves movableirom aligned -folded relation. across the interiorof the body into extended right angular relation whereby the; leaves; which are .hinged to the r-side walls will close the perforate sections thereof ,andthe leaves which are hinged tozsaid first mentioned leaves-will-close=the perforate end ;wall.

.5.-.;A;,- truck body ,=,having..= opposite-"end; walls which are :respect'ively: 'imperforate and perforatazopposite: side walls each having corresponding relatively imperforate and perforate sections and. .ampartition-located at the'junct'iomof the imperforate and' perforatesections of said side walls said-unit including opposite pairs of'horizontally :divided hingedly connected leaves;- one leaf of each pair hingedly connected tea-side wall-at the junction-of: the imperforate and perforate section s of said side walls, and both leaves movable from aligned folded relation across the interiorof thetruck -body to extended right angular relation -selectively to close the perforate seections of said side walls and close the loi qer half of the pcrforateend wall.

6. A truck body, top, end and side walls, said side walls having imperforate and perforate sections, the latter being adjacent one end wall, a pair of doors each hinged at one edge to the inner part of a side wall at the junction of the imperforate and perforate sections thereof, said doors when aligned across the interior of the truck body forming two compartments, oneof which is closed and the other of which is open to the atmosphere through said perforate sections, said doors when swung out of alignment and parallel to the inside face of said perforate 10 Number sections forming a single compartment closed to the atmosphere.

WILLIAM W. GENTRY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

